Andreaea barbarae Luceño, C. Cerrejón, J. Muñoz & Maguilla, 2018

Cerrejón, Carlos, Maguilla, Enrique, Quandt, Dietmar, Muñoz, Jesús & Luceño, Modesto, 2018, Andreaea barbarae (Andreaeaceae, Bryophytina), a new moss species from Lesotho, Phytotaxa 336 (2), pp. 148-158 : 152-154

Andreaea barbarae Luceño, C. Cerrejón, J. Muñoz & Maguilla , sp. nov., Figs. 2–3 .

Diagnosis:—From A. rupestris Hedw. and all African species of the section, A. barbarae can be distinguished by its larger, both fertile and sterile, spores. Moreover, A. barbarae shows very concave, frequently panduriform leaves, with obtuse to rounded apex and upper cells isodiametric, with very thin and non-pitted walls, mostly unistratose, but frequently forming bistratose patches. Finally, the indehiscent part of the capsule in A. barbarae is as long as- to longer than the dehiscent one (see Table 1).

Description:—Plants medium sized to large, red-brown to black. Stem (6–) 10–20 mm high. Axillary hairs 2– 3(–5)-celled, with a usually persistent apical, brownish, mucilaginous cell. Mature leaves (0.7–)0.8–1.0(–1.1) × 0.3– 0.4(–0.5) mm, appressed to imbricate when dry, erect-patent when wet, straight, very concave, panduriform, oblong, obovate or, more rarely, ovate, with strongly incurved margins in the upper tiers of the leaves and obtuse to rounded, straight apex. Costa absent. Lamina unistratose or, frequently, with irregular bistratose patches in the upper half; upper cells (5.6–)7.0–12.2(–16.6) × (5.5–)6.9–9.5(–12.4) μm, ± isodiametric, polygonal to subquadrate, rarely shortly oblong, ovate or oblate ( Fig. 4D ), with thin walls (1.6–)2.1–3.5(–4.9) μm wide, non collenchymatous nor pitted, much narrower than cell lumen, with prominent hyaline cuticular dorsal papillae usually more than twice longer than wide. Mid cells (transitional between upper and basal ones, Fig. 4C ) stellate, shortly oblong or rectangular, with much thicker longitudinal walls than those of upper cells and thin transversal walls, strongly pitted ( Fig. 2C ). Basal cells (13.9–)19.2–36.0(–45.1) × (6.5–)7.4–10.1(–12.2) μm, variable, short to long rectangular, with ± thick longitudinal walls (2.7–)3.5–6.1(–7.6) μm, either wider or narrower than cell lumen, frequently pitted, sometimes nodose, and thin, transverse walls oblique ( Fig. 4B ). Basal marginal cells mostly rectangular, sometimes subquadrate. Cladautoicous. Perigonia with many paraphyses. Perichaetial leaves 1.4–1.8(–2.1) mm, well differentiated from vegetative ones, sheathing and convolute, papillose. Capsules 0.45–0.76 mm, common, with non-dehiscent part whitish to light greenish, as long to longer than dehiscent part. Spore abortion frequent, shriveled sterile spores (26–)31.0–38.4(–42.5) μm in diameter, turgid fertile spores (32.3–)36.7–46.7(–56.2) μm in diameter.

Type:— LESOTHO. Leribe: Mafika Lisiu Pass , 3072 m, wet basalts, 29°03’56.0’’S 28°24’33.0’’E, 14 th January 2014, V. Pineda, M. Luceño, T. Villaverde & E. Maguilla 7 VPL14 (holotype UPOS100396 ; isotypes MA, PRE, NU) .

Paratype:— LESOTHO. Maseru District: pathway from Roma to Semonkong, 2848 m, basaltic wall in high summit, 29°43’41.4’’S 27°56’51.2’’E, 16 th January 2014, V. Pineda, M. Luceño, T. Villaverde & E. Maguilla 39VPL14 (UPOS102362).

Etymology:—Species named to honor Dr. Barbara Murray, in recognition of her work in the genus Andreaea .

Chorology and ecology:—Endemic to the Maloti and Thaba-Putsoa Mountain ranges of Lesotho ( Fig. 5 ). It grows on exposed bare basalts at high altitude.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Andreaea barbarae (Holotypus). UPOS100396, Lesotho, Leribe, Mafika Lisiu Pass. (A) Habit; (B) Vegetative leaf; (C) Upper leaf cells; (D) Mid leaf cells; (E) Basal leaf cells; (F) Transverse leaf sections; (G) Axillary hairs; (H) Perichaetial leaves and capsule; (I) Turgid spores; (J) Shrivelled spores; (K) Perigonial leaves with antheridia and paraphyses. Scale bars: A = 1 mm; B, F, K = 100 μm; C, D, E = 10 μm; G = 50 μm; H = 0,2 mm; I, J = 40 μm.—Drawing by Rodrigo Tavera.

FIGURE 3. Habit photo of Andreaea barbarae (Mafika Lisiu Pass, Lesotho).

FIGURE 4. Detailed pictures of Andreaea barbarae. (A) Leaf from upper part of vegetative shoot; (B) Basal leaf cells; (C) Mid leaf cells; (D) Leaf apex showing upper leaf cells. Scale bars: A = 100 μm; B, C, D = 20 μm.

FIGURE 5. Distribution map of A. barbarae.